This is Haru: Honda's social robot that helps children

Honda has unveiled Haru , its new social robot with artificial intelligence (AI), at the Virgen del Rocío University Hospital (HUVR) in Seville, Spain. This innovative device has been designed to improve the emotional well-being of hospitalized children, particularly those receiving cancer treatment.

The presentation took place within the framework of the Annual Gala against Childhood Cancer, held on November 28 at the Casino de la Exposición in Seville.

Haru is an emotional assistance robot

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This is an emotional assistance robot developed by Honda Research Institute Japan (HRI-JP). Its main objective is to become a companion for patients, offering emotional support through empathetic interactions.

Measuring just 30cm tall, Haru is compact and can easily be placed on a table, making it easy to interact with patients. It uses cameras and microphones to pick up facial expressions and voice tones, analysing this data to emotionally adapt to each user.

haru the little robot — The robot is 30 cm tall. Source: Honda

Since 2021, HUVR has been conducting a pilot trial with Haru in its pediatric oncology unit. The results of this initial trial have been promising, showing that the robot can play a key role in a number of areas, such as:

Emotional Assessment : Haru assists the hospital’s neuropsychologists in conducting emotional and cognitive assessments, which has led to a significant increase in the number of assessments conducted annually from 510 to 4,500.

Rehabilitation : The robot has shown remarkable effectiveness in rehabilitation programs, promoting greater participation of children in intellectual and physical recovery activities. 95% of children participated more actively when they received guidance from Haru, compared to traditional methods.

Companion in the hospital : Patients undergoing long-term care often experience loneliness. Haru provides company, entertainment and cognitive stimulation, contributing to children’s emotional well-being.

Distance Learning : For those children who are unable to attend classes, Haru serves as a middleman between virtual schools and hospital rooms, allowing patients to keep up with their education while receiving treatment.

Advances and future prospects

The results obtained have been so positive that HUVR has decided to expand the use of Haru in the pediatric oncology unit. 10 units of this interactive robot have been introduced to be used in various situations, not only to assess or rehabilitate, but also to improve the emotional and educational quality of life of hospitalized children.

The advancement of this project highlights Honda’s vision to integrate cognitive technology and advanced AI into sensitive areas such as healthcare. According to Satoshi Shigemi, director of HRI-JP, the development of Haru is an important step towards creating a society where robots and people coexist to improve overall well-being.

In this video you can see how the robot interacts with hospitalized patients.